Oilers at Canadiens
THE STORY: The high-flying Edmonton Oilers take their act to the East Coast on Tuesday as they visit the red-hot Montreal Canadiens. Edmonton is 1-1 on its six-game trek as it makes its first appearance in the Eastern Time Zone this season. The Oilers are coming off a 4-2 loss to the Phoenix Coyotes, a game in which Edmonton looked listless for two periods before finally springing to life. While the Oilers remain one of the early feel-good stories of the 2011-12 NHL season, the Canadiens are rounding into form after stumbling out of the gate. They saw their four-game winning streak come to an end in a 5-3 loss to the New York Rangers last time out, but have improved by leaps and bounds over the past 10 days. Tuesday marks Edmonton's first visit to La Belle Province since Dec. 1.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, RS West (Edmonton), RDS, TSN (Montreal)
ABOUT THE OILERS (8-3-2): As good as Edmonton has been, the club may be on the verge of getting even better. Forward Ales Hemsky has been skating with the team for the past week and may dress for Tuesday's game. The return of Hemsky, who had 42 points in 47 games last season, will add even more offensive depth to a team that has relied heavily on its top two lines. Hemsky has played only two games this season because of a right shoulder injury.
ABOUT THE CANADIENS (5-6-2): Big things were expected of Erik Cole when the Canadiens signed him to a free agent contract over the summer. So far, the veteran forward hasn't delivered. Cole has only three goals and two assists in 13 games, and his minus-three rating is also a concern. A 26-goal scorer a season ago, Cole is seeing sparse time on the power play and is still looking for his first multi-point effort of the campaign.
OVERTIME:
1. Edmonton won both meetings last season, earning a 4-3 overtime decision in Montreal in December before prevailing 4-1 at home in February.
2. Canadiens forward Tomas Plekanec has traditionally struggled against Edmonton, limited to a goal and two assists in eight career games.